Thursday, November 03, 2011

Links Nov 3

Re-Occupying Main Street Huffington PostNov 1 - TJN Senior Adviser Rev. Seamus P. Finn, OMI observes: "I believe there are analogies and lessons to be drawn from the responsible citizenship on display by demonstrators across the world, and the responsible ownership practiced by active shareholders in corporations."

The City of London Corporation: some initial thoughts Treasure IslandsNov 3 - Nick Shaxson responds to some very specific questions on the City of London Corporation, its powers, and its connections with the world of offshore tax havens.NYTimes notes the changing mood on tax evasion Treasure IslandsNov 3 - Nick Shaxson comments on aNY Times article. He notes how the OECD is trying to claim credit that its processes are raising billions in tax revenue, but as our colleagues in Paris point out, a country-by-country breakdown of the data reveals that in France, every last penny of the claimed increase in revenue came from whistleblower data.FTSE companies do not pay 26% tax Tax Research UKNov 3 - Richard Murphy on "a story from a couple of days ago that has spun in all sorts of weird ways" with some misleading information on UK corporate tax data.

USA: Liberals call for corporate ‘Buffett Rule’ The HillNov 3 - "“Warren Buffett spotlighted the madness of a tax code that lets him pay a lower rate than his secretary,” Scott Klinger, director of tax policy for Business for Shared Prosperity, said in a news release. “Likewise, Big Business shouldn’t be paying lower taxes than small businesses.”

Thirty companies paid no U.S. income tax 2008-2010 ReutersNov 3 - Thirty large and profitable U.S. corporations paid no income taxes in 2008 through 2010, said a study on Thursday that arrives as Congress faces rising demands for tax reform but seems unable or unwilling to act. Pepco Holdings Inc, a Washington, D.C.-area power company, had the lowest effective tax rate, at negative 57.6 percent, among the 280 Fortune 500 companies studied."Some links from Canada, hat tip: Canadians for Tax Fairness.Tax isn't a four-letter word Globe and MailOct 21- "So how did “taxes” become a bad word?... The notion that taxes are somehow separate from the services and goods they buy is now part of political culture and it has distorted the conversation in Canada as well."

A 'Buffett Tax' for Canada? Canadian BusinessOct 26 - "There are relatively fewer wealthy people in Canada than south of the border, but it doesn’t take that many of them to make a big difference. The question is: Who will step up and be our Warren Buffett?"

Don’t just occupy Wall Street, tax itThe StarOct 12 - Financial transactions taxes can be a win-win solution for both the stability of the economy and for governments shouldering large deficits from the financial crisis. As the “Occupy Wall Street” protests spread around the world, the least governments could do is tax their financial sectors fairly.

How to make inequality obsolete The StarOct 24 - "A study by Marc Lee of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives showed that when all taxes are included, the poorest 10 per cent of Canadians — those earning less than $13,500 a year — paid fully 30.7 per cent of their tiny incomes in tax, while the top 1 per cent — with incomes above $300,000 — had a slightly lighter burden, paying 30.5 per cent of their incomes in tax."

And on an artistic note:

Offshore by Gavrillo YouTube"The world's first song on tax dodging, inspired by the book Treasure Islandsby Nicholas Shaxson ... Get Angry - Get Active"

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The Tax Justice Network (TJN) is an international, non-aligned network of researchers and activists with a shared concern about the harmful impacts of tax avoidance, tax competition and tax havens.
www.taxjustice.net